Ok I am looking to build a new FE/BE system (this will end up becoming just the BE later on down the road)

The parts I want can be found here:
http://secure.newegg.com/Shopping/AddToCart.aspx?Submit=Add&itemList=N82E16819103194%7c1%2cN82E16813131072%7c1%2cN82E16820134488%7c2%2cN82E16827106245%7c1%2cN82E16814500013%7c1%2cN82E16822144701%7c1%2cN82E16822152052%7c3%2cN82E16811156062%7c1%2cN82E16833166002%7c1

I am also looking to use the HDHomeRun and StreamZap Remote.

Here are the questions I have;

1.) Will this hardware work without any problems or will I have to do certin tweaks to get it all working ok?

2.) I have read that it is suggested that you setup for more memory to be alloted to the Kernal, if you plan to do more then 3 HD recordings at a time, which I do plan to do down the road.

3.) The video card has HDMI out that also streams audio, will this work for me, or is it a waste?

4.) Please do not flame me for the noob questions, I have looked up some of the stuff on the forums and have not realy found the answers I was looking for (YES I DID SEARCH BEFORE POSTING), or they where to old to compinsate for newer revisions and patches.

In further, I do understand that the proc may be more then I need, but for the price I could not go wrong, plus it will help when I re-encode the HD captures to another format for use on other devices.

I do thank you for your time, and hope that I will recieve a responce from this post.


Norm

---Stuck in Afghanistan for the next 15months ---BAH!

Cripe, that's alot of computer for a PVR. I don't know much about the specific pieces, but

* How are you planning on configuring the 4 drives? If RAID via the onboard "RAID" controller, see http://linuxmafia.com/faq/Hardware/sata.html

* Search these forums for 8600GT, I seem to recall some folks having issues with that chip and the nVidia drivers.

* That motherboard already has a Gb NIC, why the additional Rosewill?

* 4Gb RAM is really overkill, unless you intend to use the computer for other things that you have not mentioned. I have no more than 1Gb in any of my KM boxen.

* Asus motherboards are known for being very picky about RAM voltage, be sure that Kingston RAM is the right voltage.

Stay safe and come home healthy!

Perhaps you have some unstated reasons & usages for your system that are affecting your choices. I say this because, frankly, I see a lot of unneeded expense in your list.

Currently the best price per gig ratio seems to be on 750 gig drives, not the 500 gig ones you've chosen. Staying in the same Samsung line, two 750's give you the same storage for $300 as opposed the the $330 for 3 x 500 Gigs. They'd be quieter, and use less power too.

Additionally, I think the extra 250 Gig drive is not needed (I assume you want to put the OS on it, and use the others for storing recordings.) The about to be released R6 will let you will let you store different things on different drives, without having the potential breakdown problems of LVM. Or perhaps you were planning a Raid array. But again, extra drive = extra power requirements + extra heat.

Most current generation motherboards already have gigabit Ethernet port built in. Do you have a special need for the second network connection? If that were the case, I'd select a board with two network connections.

Certainly that high an end graphics card is unneeded, unless you're planning a dual boot to Windows, and some heafty First Person Shooters (which might also account for that extra 250 gig drive).

Changing to a different motherboard, with a "good enough" integrated video, with HDMI already in place seems like a good shot, with extra savings, and again less heat and less noise. For example the MSI K9NGM3-FIH for about $8 less than your Asus board. It already has the HDMI on board, eliminating your need for an extra video card, and again less power and noise from it's fan.

Cases are an intensely personal choice. So the lighted, side window case might be exactly your choice. At lease consider a quieter, possibly cooler, case like the Antec New Solution NSK2480, real HTPC looking case, or any of their other NSK designs (developed with the people from Silent PC Review). Get one with the "80" ending, bucause it's power supply has an 80+ power efficiency rating.

Just some thoughts - take em with a grain of salt. Those suggestions would save about $200, and make less parts to dicker with - less shipping too.

I've seen a number of these posts where the question is "Is this HW sufficient." and the answer is "It's overkill." I think this is a good thing, and shows how Myth requirements have stayed pretty flat while the hardware just keeps getting better. The cart in the link has a sub-$900 PC that will make a kick-ass PVR.

One question, what's the NIC for? It's only $12 but the mobo already has 10/100/1000 built-in.

Also, if you build this, you might want to post your result in the appropriate "Tier x" section of the forum...

Ok to answer a few of the questions


1.) Video Card - I was going to see if I can install wine on the system and run WOW.....I figure it would be nice to play on my TV when nothing else on to watch.

2.) Extra NIC - I was planning on using it as a dedicated port just for the HDHomeRun, the built on NIC was for access to the rest of my network

3.) HD'S - Well I do thank you for the info on the 750's I did over look that, I was not planning on doing raid, Just use each drive for independent stuff. The 250 was for the OS drive, yes I was going to dual boot with windows.

4.) Video Card - I was not sure if this was overkill I figured for the price it was not a bad card. The HDMI out with full supported sound besides video is why I choose it (and wanted to get opinions on it). I did read some people where having problems with the 8600, but it did not seem to be enough to scare me.

5.) Memory - Ok prob overkill but I have always been one to believe in a little bit to much sometimes is never a bad thing, but in this case I think I will trim the fat and save the money.

I want to thank everyone that posted and gave me suggestions. I will def take everything in, and rethink the build. It is nice to know there is OS's out there and software that can be as powerful if not more powerfull then the suites that cost you 100's of dollars, and require so much less to run.